Cancelled Operations in NHS England

Responding to a BBC investigation that suggests tens of thousands of operations were cancelled by English hospitals last year, but not officially counted, Mr Michael Lavelle-Jones, President of The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh said:

“As surgeons, we are all too aware of the impact a last minute cancellation can have on patients. Not only does it delay a vital intervention, it increases stress which can have a wider impact on their health.

"It is vital that every effort is taken to reduce the number of same day cancellations to as close to zero as possible. However, we will never be able to understand the reasons for cancellations if they are not recorded accurately. As such, we are calling on NHS England to work with all hospitals to implement a robust system of recording which can be used to inform improvement efforts.”

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